Clean coal: the future of energy?

With world energy consumption set to rise significantly - and the holy grail of nuclear fusion yet to be realised - coal is looking like the best solution to our energy needs. It's not without controversy though...

Earlier this week, Greenpeace activists tried to stop operations at the Kingsnorth coal-fired power station in England. They were protesting over plans to build another coal-burning plant at the site. But they are probably fighting a losing battle when you consider practicality and reality instead of idealism.

World energy consumption is not falling it is going to rise significantly. Total world consumption of marketed energy is projected to increase by 57% from 2004 to 2030, according to the US Energy Information Administration. This rise will be boosted by the soaring global population. The total number of people in the world is expected to increase by 2.6 billion over the next 45 years, from 6.5 billion today to 9.1 billion in 2050. That's a staggering increase of 40%.

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